Space will hardly allow me to do more than mention the different records of the Chancery.7

The Close Rolls, containing mandates, letters, and writs, sent in the King's name in the form of "closed" letterswhence their name; the Patent Rolls, letters patent of a more public character; the Fine Rolls-upon which the writs of diem clausit, of seizin on heirs doing their fealty or homage for the lands of the deceased, of dower, and of license for widows to remarry, are generally enrolled-are of the greatest value, often giving information not to be found in the Inquisitions Post Mortem; and the Charter Rolls, enrolments of all manner of Royal grants, are among the most important of the Rolls.

On the great value and interest of the documents relating to the Suits in Chancery, which have been preserved from the fourteenth century to the present time, I will not trust myself to dilate, lest it should be thought that I, as a lawyer, were but indulging in a lawyer's generic love of an equity suit. I may, however, mention with feelings of regretful admiration, that the bare calendar of them for the reign of Elizabeth only, takes up three folio volumes closely printed.

Among other Indices relating to these suits are the "Bill Books," which are perfect from the reign of Elizabeth, in which the Christian and surnames of all parties and a short account of the Bill are given, each volume being divided into counties, and the Indexes to the "Bills and Answers," "Depositions," and "Decrees," all of which date from the same period.

With these Chancery Suits, hoping that I have not wearied my readers, I must now end these notes, anomalous though it may seem to the non-legal reader, to connect an ending with proceedings traditionally infinite.

I have already referred to the "Miscellaneous Chancery Records," and the "Chancery Records in Filaciis."

North Creake Abbey.

COMMUNICATED BY

GEORGE A. CARTHEW, ESQ., F. S. A.

THE engraving prefixed to this notice, and taken from a photograph by Sawyer, gives a view of the existing remains of the Church of this Abbey, which was one of the objects of a visit by our Society in the summer excursion of 1863. These consist only of the walls of the choir and some side chapels,— the tower, transepts, and nave having been long since demolished. The style of the original building was Early English, of the time of Edward I., but it may be seen from the view that some capitals and mouldings are of later date. The choir communicated on the north side by an arch, of which the mouldings are Early Decorated, with a side chapel or east aisle to the transept; and this again with a larger, the Lady, chapel, by two Early English arches springing from a clustered pier and responds. This contains an Early English piscina, and a low wide arch, which probably spanned a benefactor's tomb. It had an east window of five lights with Decorated mouldings. The first-named aislechapel opened into the north transept by two Decorated arches resting on an octagon pier. In the inside, near the north respond, is the vestige of a winding staircase. The

1 An engraving of this chapel, from a drawing by Cotman, is given in the Excursions through Norfolk, vol. i. p. 180, the pond in the foreground being imaginary.

east or end wall of the choir is not standing, and the length of the existing walls must have been considerably curtailed since 1738, when Messrs. Buck's view was published, wherein the blank arcades, now consisting of but four or five bays on each side, are represented with seven. The arch on the south side, seen in the engraving, leads into a small chapel or passage which communicated with the monastic buildings. The site of these is occupied by the modern farm-house, and the cloister square has become a garden. An ogee arch, now forming the entrance to the farm-house, was removed from this square. The south transept arches have been walled up, and the double lancet window and trefoil over it, seen in our engraving, are remnants of the demolished buildings inserted in that position at a subsequent period.

If there be any original work as late in date as 1500 remaining, it may be attributed to the munificence of Sir William Calthorpe, Knt., of Burnham Thorpe, who by his will, dated on the last day of May, 1494, and proved on the 26th of November in the same year, gave a legacy to this church in the following words, which are borrowed from a complete copy of the will furnished, by our industrious member Mr. L'Estrange, to the East Anglian : 3 "of all whiche lxxiiiji vjs I wylle yt my seide sone Gurnay and Walter Aslak haue the disposic'on for makyng of the quer and of the psbitery at the Abbey of Creyke, and yf any remayne of the same ther not spent then the ouplus to be spente in odyr Repatons vpon the chapell wythin the same place wher the aunceterys of me the seid Sir William lye buryed."

The investigation of these hoary remains leads naturally to the contemplation of those fathers of old who there lived and worshipped, of their domestic history and mode of life.

I have given a short account of the original foundation of the abbey and of the manner in which it came into the

2 Abstracted in Blomefield, vi., p. 517.

3 East Anglian, vol. ii. p. 211.